Referendum on Scotland

After just getting through the referendum on Scottish independence, the next big referendum is looming on the horizon: To leave or not to leave the EU, in 2017. The law that allows for this referendum has just passed the first parliamentary hurdle (http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-29656489). While you can guess how I will vote, I am wondering whether the referendum is a good idea in the first place.

Look what happened in the run-up to the Scottish referendum; all the dirt that was flung from all sides, all the nasty nationalism, the “who do they think they are?!”. For the EU referendum, multiply this by 27 (the number of other EU member states). Already with the current irrational debate about introducing quotas for people from Central and Eastern European member states (link) coming to the UK rates high on the xenophobia scale. The list of false myths and outright lies about the EU is already astonishingly long. Do we really want to provide another big platform for the scare-mongers, stupid idiots to spew their falls rhetoric about how they only care for the British citizens? These people don’t care about us! All they care about is to change our society from being free, liberal, 21st century into authoritarian, nationalistic, 18th century.

With the current political and media system, I cannot see how the debate before the EU referendum can bring anything positive. Even today, Channel 4 news has to get a Dutch Member of the European Parliament in to to defend the EU. Where are the British politicians that point out why it is a really good idea for the UK to be in the EU? Economic development, cultural exchange, thousands of English pensioners enjoying their lives in Spain, France and Italy without the need for visas or other bureaucracy … The list of advantages goes on and on. But I just can’t see any politicians brave enough to swim against the tide of lies and fears, informing the public about what they gain from the EU. It’s a shame!